PORTS in China handled 16.97 million tonnes of cargo last year, surpassing 2022's volume by 8 per cent.

Chinese ports, encompassing sea and river terminals, collectively managed 2.61 billion tonnes of diverse cargo, reports WorldCargo News of Surrey, UK.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBSC), this is 8.1 per cent higher compared to the corresponding months from 2023.

The aggregate throughput of the country's coastal (maritime) ports alone grew by 6.8 per cent year on year to almost 1.73 billion tonnes during the two months.

Shanghai, the nation's key gateway on the East China Sea, expanded its January-February 2024 handling volume by 8.2 per cent year on year to 92 metric tonnes, according to the port's statistics. As far as its container segment is concerned, the port handled 830,400 TEU during the first two months of the current year, up 11.3 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The port of Hong Kong saw its container throughput increases by 2.9 per cent to 2.19 million TEU from January to February 2024. The figure includes 1.7 million TEU (up 4.1 per cent year on year) handled by Kwai Tsing terminals, Hong Kong's main container facilities, and 485,000 TEU (down 0.9 per cent year on year) processed by the port's other berths.